Norway's Labour and Welfare Administration (NAV) faces internal turmoil after its audit director made an extraordinary attempt to prevent the dismissal of the agency's top executive. Terje Klepp, NAV's director of internal audit, sent a confidential 16-page letter to the government's most powerful bureaucrat days before NAV chief Hans Christian Holte was forced to resign.
The controversy centers on missing activity logs in NAV's database systems. Agency staff failed to maintain proper records when making changes to certain databases, creating accountability gaps. NAV initially informed both the ministry and Norway's National Audit Office in March that they had resolved the issue. Six months later, authorities discovered the logging problems persisted, meaning NAV had provided incorrect information about the situation being fixed.
Work Minister Kjersti Stenseng expressed loss of confidence in Holte over the misinformation, compelling his resignation. This prompted Klepp's unprecedented intervention with a secret letter to ministry director Eli Telhaug, the top administrative official in the Labour and Inclusion Ministry.
"I was both shocked and surprised to hear this," Klepp wrote in the document obtained by media. "I believe this is a completely wrong reaction and will represent a major loss for both NAV and the nation of Norway."
The audit director broke standard protocol by contacting the ministry without informing his superior first. "Normally I never contact the ministry without Hans Christian being informed," he acknowledged. "In this case I break this principle."
Klepp strongly criticized the National Audit Office's handling of the matter, calling their audit of NAV's annual accounts "very special and unprofessional." He argued the missing logs didn't justify the audit office's conclusion that they couldn't obtain sufficient audit evidence.
Holte told media he learned about the secret letter only after the fact and hasn't read it. "Serious errors were uncovered that I must take responsibility for," he said. "I have full respect for the minister's decision, but I would have liked to continue as NAV director."
The minister confirmed awareness of Klepp's letter but stood by her decision. "For me this case is about NAV providing incorrect information to the ministry and National Audit Office," Stenseng stated. "This is a management responsibility, and therefore Holte had to go."
This incident reveals tension between political accountability and professional judgment within Norway's welfare administration. NAV manages Norway's extensive social security system, making operational integrity crucial for public trust. The agency has faced previous controversies over benefit payment errors affecting thousands of citizens.
The National Audit Office acknowledged professional discussions with NAV about the matter while maintaining their independent assessment. "We respect that there are multiple ways to view an audit case," said office director Tor Digranes, "but the National Audit Office is independent and we make our own professional evaluations."
Klepp emphasized his qualifications in the letter, noting his top exam results from Norway's premier business school and early career at Arthur Andersen auditing major Norwegian companies. His intervention represents a rare public display of internal dissent within Norway's normally consensus-oriented public administration.